Create your day

Start the Day off Right

A few posts ago I mentioned oatmeal brulee. I love it, and that’s saying a lot coming from someone who used to hate the stuff. My husband loves old-fashioned oatmeal, but he makes it look like one large glob of glue. Hardly appetizing enough for me, so I refused to eat it. I was able to eat the instant stuff if I didn’t overcook it and I added milk. It was palatable. Then we ate at Gravy and it changed me. I love this breakfast place on N Mississippi in Portland. They have the most awesome oatmeal. I feel head over heels in love with this stuff and decided that I needed to try and recreate it. After months of researching and experimenting, I have it. It may not be exactly like their oatmeal brulee, but it’s close and it sure is tasty.

So here it is for you to try at home:

Banana Walnut Oatmeal Brulee

Ingredients

1 cup old-fashioned oats (I like thick cut)

1 cup of water (I use half the amount of water than normal because I like a firmer consistency to my oats)

1 banana (diced)

walnuts pieces (as much as you like)

half and half (~1 TBS)

brown sugar

Directions

Pre-heat broiler

Bring water to a boil

Add oats, turn down the heat to medium and stir. Boil until the water is almost all gone, but before the oats stick to the bottom of the pan (about 4 minutes).

Remove from heat and add diced banana and walnut pieces

Add half and half.

Spoon into broiler safe bowls (I like ramekins)

Pat brown sugar in an even layer over top of oatmeal (1-2TBS)

Place under broiler for a couple of minutes until bubbly and golden brown.

Remove and let cool for a few minutes.

Eat and Enjoy!

Variations:

berries instead of the banana

any nuts for the walnuts or none at all

you can add spices like cinnamon if you so desire

If you add apples or pears for the banana I recommend cooking them before adding them to the oatmeal. I usually cook them with a little butter and Cinnamon but you can play around with it.

So far my favorite has been the banana walnut, but I encourage you to take this recipe and run with it.